a political science professor says it does not matter why they detained him. what matters is that they did. >> what matters is that they now have a bargaining chip vis-a-vis the u.s. government. although no one's going to say outlewd that's what it is, i'm quite certain that both sides know exactly that's what it is. >> according to reuters, newman went to south korea twice in the past decade, but this was his first known trip to the north. >>> vice president joe biden will stop in south korea this week during his week-long visit to asia. as of now, there's no word whether he's discuss or meet with anyone regarding merrill newman and his arrest in north korea. the vice president plans to participate in a ceremony honoring u.s. troops who died during the korean war. over the weekend, the white house released a statement asking for the release of newman and kenneth bae, another american held in the communist country. >>> we have more on this story on our website at nbcbayarea.com. just search merrill newman. >>> people across the country recognize the progress t